Device for measuring the striking force and reaction time of martial artists

ABSTRACT

A training device for measuring the impact of an athlete on the training device is provided. The training device comprises a striker module, a display module and a communication system. The striker module comprises a front, a back, and a detector. The front comprises a flexible material, and is connected to the back to define a space. The detector comprises at least two components, one mounted on the front and the other on the back, such that upon flexing of the front, the components approach one another. The communication system sends information from the detector to the display module. A method of assessing an athlete&#39;s impact is also provided.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/700,419, filed Jul. 18, 2005, which provisional application is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Technical Field

The invention relates to an apparatus for assessing both the striking force and the reaction time of martial artists. Specifically, the invention is based on a makawari that provides feedback to enable a martial artist to improve their striking technique.

2. Background

Devices for measuring the force of the impact are well known in the art. Such devices include athletic training apparatus that are designed to be struck by an athlete's hands or feet. These athletic training devices are typically adapted to provide the user with an indication of the impact force of his or her punches and kicks thereby providing the athlete with feedback on his or her performance. Accordingly, the feedback enables the user to improve his or her technique and performance.

Several devices that indicate the force of a strike or the reaction time of a martial artist have been patented. Differences between these devices relate to the structure of the striker module, the sensor(s) used to determine the magnitude of the impact, and the method of displaying this magnitude. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,850,224 (Impact apparatus, Jul. 25, 1989) and U.S. Pat. No. 4,084,811 (Hitting device for martial arts, Apr. 18, 1978) have air chambers located inside a striker module. When the striker module is struck air is expelled to an indicating apparatus, which provides a measure of the impact force. These devices are highly inaccurate and do not provide any measurement of reaction time.

In an attempt to improve upon the technology, U.S. Pat. No. 5,741,970 (Impact measuring apparatus, Apr. 21, 1998), U.S. Pat. No. 4,941,660 (Impact and speed measuring system, Jul. 17, 1990), and U.S. Pat. No. 4,088,315 (Device for self-defense training, May 9, 1998) use pressure transducers embedded within a striker module. A similar approach was taken in U.S. Pat. No. 4,824,107 (Sports scoring device including a piezoelectric transducer) and U.S. Pat. No. 4,883,271 (Sports impact measuring device, Nov. 28, 1989) wherein piezoelectric films are mounted on a striker module. Yet another approach is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,974,833 (Electronic martial arts training device, Dec. 4, 1990) wherein vibrations induced in a speaker-like cone during impact are used to generate a signal indicative of the force of the blow. Unfortunately, the output of all these devices is very sensitive to the location of the strike, and accordingly only provide a rough estimate of the impact force.

To overcome the foregoing deficiencies, U.S. Pat. No. 4,565,366 (Martial arts practice device, Jan. 21, 1986) uses a series of electrical switches which operate to register the force of the blows delivered to the striker module while U.S. Patent 20030060340 (Impact dynamometer for martial arts and sports training, Mar. 27, 2003) uses a Tachometer sensor comprising a magnet and a Hall effect sensor to determine the velocity of a struck striker module. Although these particular devices measure the motion of the striker module and are therefore less sensitive to impact position they are too elaborate to be commercially viable.

There is a need for a commercially viable device that will allow martial artists to accurately assess the force of their strikes as well as their reaction times. It is an object of the invention to overcome the deficiencies of the prior art.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A training device called a powerboard is provided that is based on the traditional makawari (striking board) that is used in the martial arts. The sensor is simple, durable, and inexpensive to manufacture. The powerboard is a training device for martial artists that enable them to determine the force of their strikes (in terms of board breaking ability) and their reaction time.

In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, a training device for measuring the impact of an athlete on the training device is provided. The training device comprises a striker module, a display module and a communication system. The striker module comprises a front, a back, and a detector. The front comprises a flexible material, and is connected to the back to define a space. The detector comprises at least two components, one mounted on the front and the other on the back, such that upon flexing of the front, the components approach one another. The communication system sends information from the detector to the display module.

In one aspect of the invention the detector comprises a magnet and a wire coil.

In another aspect of the invention, the front comprises a contact surface and an inner surface, and the contact surface further comprises a resilient layer.

In another aspect of the invention, the resilient layer is a high density foam layer.

In another aspect of the invention, the striker module further comprises at least one set of spacers between the front and the back to define a space.

In another aspect of the invention, there is one set of spacers.

In another aspect of the invention, the communication system is a wireless communication system.

In another aspect of the invention, the communication system is via an electrical connection.

In another aspect of the invention, the front and the back are wooden boards.

In another aspect of the invention, the display module further comprises a microcontroller.

In another aspect of the invention, the training device further comprises a start signal.

In another aspect of the invention, the training device further comprises a warning signal.

In another aspect of the invention, the start signal and the warning signal are lights.

In another aspect of the invention, the start signal and the warning signal are auditory signals.

A method of assessing an athlete's impact is also provided. The method comprises impacting a front of a striker module, flexing the front towards a back of the striker module, urging components of a detector towards one another, inducing a voltage through the detector, and displaying an output.

In one aspect of the method of the invention, the voltage is electromagnetically induced.

In another aspect of the invention, the method further comprises processing the output to display relative number of boards broken.

In another aspect of the invention, the method further comprises signaling a start time and a processing the output to display a reaction time.

In another aspect of the invention, the method further comprises a warning signal prior to signaling a start time.

In another aspect of the method of the invention, the warning signal and the start time signal are visual.

In another aspect of the method of the invention, the warning signal and the start time signal are auditory.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a front view of a training device in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view of the training device of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

A powerboard, generally referred to as 10, as shown in FIG. 1, is based on the traditional makawari (striking board) that is used in the martial arts. The powerboard 10 is a training device for martial artists that enable them to determine the force of their strikes (in terms of board breaking ability) and their reaction time. The powerboard 10 has a striker module 12 and a plug-in electronic display module 14. A high-density foam pad 16 is affixed to a front board 18 at a contact surface 20. The front board 18 is in turn joined at an inner surface 22, which opposes the contact surface 20, via spacers 24, to a back board 26, to define a space 27. The back board 26 is for attachment to a wall or beam. A magnet 28 is attached to the inner surface 22 of the front board 18 and a wire coil 30 is fastened opposing the magnet 28 to a detection face 32 of the back board 26. The magnet 28 and the wire coil 30 together form a detector 31. An electrical connection 34 from the wire coil 30 connects to the electronic display module 14, which includes a microcontroller 36, a display screen 38, a first light 40 and a second light 42.

When the high density foam pad 16 is struck, the front board 18 flexes towards the back board 26. As the front board 18 flexes towards the back board 26 a voltage is generated in the coil 30 by the magnet 28 via electromagnetic induction. The magnitude of the voltage increases with the speed at which the magnet 28 moves back towards the coil 30. The voltage is therefore indicative of the force with which the pad 16 was struck.

The module 14 has two basic modes of operation, a power mode and a reaction mode. When the module 14 is in power mode the voltage is converted to a number that correlates to the number of standard martial arts boards that would have been broken. The number is displayed on a display screen 38. When the module 14 is in reaction mode a first light 40 comes on to warn the user to prepare. Then a second light 42 will come on at random time later (between 1 to 5 seconds after the 1^(st) light) which triggers the user to strike the high density foam pad 16. The time of impact with the striker module 12 is found by determining when the generated voltage exceeds a set threshold. The time between the second light 42 coming on and impact with the striker module 12 is measured by the microcontroller 36 and the result is shown on the display screen 38.

In addition to these basic modes the powerboard 10 may also have several challenge modes. For example, one mode will display a power level that the user will then try to generate. If the user strikes the striker module within a predetermined range of the indicated level the attempt will be considered successful and a new level will be displayed. Another challenge mode will be similar to the reaction mode except that the user must strike the striker module within a predetermined reaction time for the attempt to be considered successful. The unit will keep track and display the success rate of the user.

The foregoing is a description of an embodiment of the invention. As would be known to one skilled in the art, variations that do not alter the scope of the invention are contemplated. For example, the front board may be comprised of wood or any other flexible material or composites that permit quantification of the force of an impact. Similarly, the high density foam can be replaced with another material or composite that is selected to prevent injury to the athlete, but which permits quantification of the force of impact. The number of spacers can be variable, as can their placement. Further, the spacers may be integral with the front board, the back board or both. Another modification is that the electrical connection may be removed and replaced with a wireless communication system. 

1. A training device for measuring the impact of an athlete on the training device, said training device comprising: a striker module comprising a front, a back, and a detector, said front comprising a flexible material, said front connected to said back to define a space, said detector comprising at least two components, one mounted on said front and the other on said back, such that upon flexing of the front, the components approach one another; a display module; and a communication system whereby information is sent from the detector to the display module.
 2. The training device of claim 1 wherein said detector comprises a magnet and a wire coil.
 3. The training device of claim 2, wherein said front comprises a contact surface and an inner surface, and said contact surface further comprises a resilient layer.
 4. The training device of claim 3 wherein said resilient layer is a high density foam layer.
 5. The training device of claim 3 wherein said striker module further comprises at least one set of spacers between said front and said back to define a space.
 6. The training device of claim 5 wherein there is one set of spacers.
 7. The training device of claim 2 wherein said communication system is a wireless communication system.
 8. The training device of claim 2 wherein said communication system is via an electrical connection.
 9. The training device of claim 2 wherein said front and said back are wooden boards.
 10. The training device of claim 2 wherein said display module further comprises a microcontroller.
 11. The training device of claim 2 further comprising a start signal.
 12. The training device of claim 11 further comprising a warning signal.
 13. The training device of claim 12 wherein said start signal and said warning signals are lights.
 14. The training device of claim 12 wherein said start signal and said warning signal are auditory signals.
 15. A method of assessing an athlete's impact, said method comprising impacting a front of a striker module, flexing said front towards a back of said striker module, urging components of a detector towards one another, inducing a voltage through said detector, and displaying an output.
 16. The method of claim 15 wherein said voltage is electromagnetically induced.
 17. The method of claim 16 further comprising processing said output to display relative number of boards broken.
 18. The method of claim 15 further comprising signaling a start time and a processing said output to display a reaction time.
 19. The method of claim 18 further comprising a warning signal prior to signaling a start time.
 20. The method of claim 19 wherein said warning signal and said start time signal are visual.
 21. The method of claim 19 wherein said warning signal and said start time signal are auditory. 